The Ultimate Sacrifice
by TheWhiteWolf2264
Summary: Danny Phantom is a young 15-year-old boy from Amity Park who fights to protect the town from ravaging ghosts. After an event known as the "Disasteroid" changed his life forever, Danny must now live up to his reputation as a hero and protect all those who need him, while also battling against new enemies that aren't very happy about his new title. Can Danny save them all?
1. Chapter 1: The New Enemy

Author's Note: I do not own Danny Phantom. All credit for the show and characters involved goes to Butch Hartman.

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 **The Ultimate Sacrifice**

Chapter 1: A New Enemy

Have you ever wondered what life would be like as a hero? Saving people, hunting things, the everyday job. For one 15-year-old boy, that was his life. After a fateful accident in his parents' lab a year ago, he was inevitably thrown into the challenging life of a human-ghost hybrid. Now, using the powers and abilities he was so suddenly gifted with, he fights every day to protect the town he calls home from all of the ravaging ghosts that bring havoc to it. His name is Danny Fenton, also known as, Danny Phantom. In the year since he gained his abilities, Danny endured many life-changing difficulties. From battling the ghost of a meat-suited cafeteria lady to saving the planet from a destructive asteroid, the boy grew from "public enemy number one" to a world renowned hero. During the events of his most recent battle to save the world against the "Disasteroid", Danny revealed his secret of being half-ghost. When he transformed from Phantom to Fenton after his heroic actions, he received nothing but love and appreciation from all who knew him. Now, 3 months since the Disasteroid, Danny was happy with his life. His parents, along with the rest of the world, knew his secret, he was in a great relationship with his girlfriend and best friend; Sam, and the people of Amity Park no longer rejected him as a threat, but rather appreciated him for his help and protection. Even his ghost-hunting parents accepted him for who he was and loved him nonetheless. At school, his grades have increased exponentially, and his teachers finally understand why he was always late or missing class, and they no longer count him off for having to fight ghosts. Everything was finally starting to look up for Danny.

As he sat with Sam on the roof of his parents' op center enjoying the sunset, Danny smiled. Unbeknownst to him, a man wearing a black cloak hid in the distance, watching them. Though Danny received much more love and appreciation since he revealed his secret, there were still a select few people and ghosts throughout the world that held nothing but hatred for the young ghost-boy. The cloaked man wanted revenge on Danny. He despised him for always being a little goody-two-shoes and getting everything he wanted. While he watched Danny and Sam from afar, the man smiled an evil grin as he thought of his villainous strategy to ruin the life that young Danny had worked so hard for.

Danny and Sam sat together admiring the last few minutes of the sunset as it faded into the growing night sky. Neither of them said a single word to each other as they absorbed the beautiful peace and quiet of this very moment. Danny loved this, every single bit of it. He loved spending time with Sam, just being with each other. He loved the aesthetic of everything around him; the sunset, the gentle breeze, the birds flying in the sky, and Sam. Oh how he loved her. He loved the way the sun reflected in her uniquely violet eyes. He loved the way her short, black hair flowed in the wind. He just loved everything about her. If he could stay in this very moment for the rest of his life, he would. It was then that Sam turned to Danny and said; "I wish it would last forever, it's so beautiful." Danny looked back at her and said; "Maybe that's why it's so beautiful though, because it doesn't last forever." They looked each other in the eyes and smiled as the sun finally set below the horizon and the night sky grew darker. "We should head inside now, dinner will probably be ready soon," said Danny. Sam nodded in agreement and Danny transformed back into his human form as the two made their way inside FentonWorks.

Sam stayed with Danny while the Fenton family all gathered together to enjoy a hot and fresh store-bought fried chicken dinner. Danny's mother, Maddie almost never cooked because it rarely came out edible. Luckily for them, the family was so active because of all the ghost fighting that they didn't have to worry about gaining weight from eating fast food for dinner all the time. So, in a way, ghost fighting was both a blessing and a curse. For the Fenton family, however, there was no better way to spend time together than kicking ghost butt. Every night, after a long day of school and dealing with ghosts, Danny was always happy to be able to come home and enjoy a good dinner with the ones he loved.

After everyone had finished with their dinner, Danny said goodbye to Sam as she left to go home. He offered to fly her home but she declined, saying that she had to run some errands beforehand. They kissed each other goodbye and she was on her way. Later that night, Danny had finished his homework and was about to get ready for bed when he heard a loud crash from outside. A scream came shortly after at the same moment his ghost sense went off and a short blue mist escaped his lips. Danny immediately transformed into his ghost form and flew through the open window of his bedroom. Once outside, he surveyed the area from which he heard the noises. It didn't take long for Danny to find a woman trapped under a pile of rubble from a fallen building. Straightaway, Danny flew down to her aid. After a few minutes of struggling and digging through debris, he finally managed to pull the woman out. She had a few cuts and bruises but seemed otherwise unscathed. She promptly thanked Danny for his help and he nodded. "Do you know how this happened?" he asked. The woman replied, "No, I have no idea! I was just walking by when, all of a sudden, I was thrown into this small building. I know something must've pushed me but I didn't see who." Danny nodded sternly and said, "Well at least you're alright, will you be okay heading home?" "Yes, I'll be okay, thanks again," she replied and walked away.

Just then, Danny's family came running up to him. "Danny! Is everything alright? We came as soon as we realized what had happened," said his sister Jazz. "Yeah, everything's fine. Don't worry. I found a girl trapped under this rubble but she's fine now. As for the ghost that attacked her, I still don't know," he stated. "Well thank goodness you both are alright. Why don't we go home now?" said Maddie. "You go on ahead, I think I'm gonna stick around for a bit longer and try to find the ghost that did this," Danny replied. "Are you sure you don't need our help, son?" asked Danny's father, Jack. "No, no. I've got this guys, don't worry," said Danny. "Alright honey, just don't be too long. You've got school in the morning," Maddie said as the family turned to leave.

Once his family had left, Danny floated up above the buildings so that he could see the entire area. He flew around other nearby buildings, inspecting them all for the being that could have done this. After about 30 minutes had passed, Danny decided that the ghost must've left and went to head home. Just as Danny turned around, he jumped in surprise as he saw a ghost wearing a huge black cloak floating directly in front of him. This ghost was much larger than he, standing at about 7 feet tall. Though he wore a black cloak that covered most of his body, including his face, he could see that he had ominously glowing red eyes that were poised in a suspicious evil glare. From his hands he could see that the ghost had greyish blue skin, like that of a dead person. Overall, Danny received a very oppressive vibe from the ghost and he immediately knew that he would be a difficult one to deal with. "Who are you and what are you doing here?!" yelled Danny. The specter in front of him only grinned villainously with carnivorous teeth and laughed. Danny glared and said, "Answer me or I'll have no choice but to attack!" The ghost responded in a deep voice and said, "Oh trust me ghost-boy, you'll get your fight, I can promise you that." And with one last malicious laugh, he vanished into a cloud a black smoke and disappeared into thin air.

Danny floated there, gawking at the sudden disappearance of his new enemy. With strong concern, he thought about what the ghost had just told him… "Oh trust me ghost-boy, you'll get your fight, I can promise you that" … Then Danny's heart filled with fear as he immediately took to the skies and flew home as fast as he could. He needed to warn his friends and family about this new entity right away. As soon as he arrived back in his bedroom, Danny immediately transformed back into his human form and ran downstairs to tell his family what happened. After he explained everything to his family, he then called his friends, Sam and Tucker, telling them everything. Once he made sure that his loved ones were aware of the threat that he had encountered, he mentally prepared himself as he worried about what was to come. He was terrified; but not for himself, for his friends and family, and for the citizens of Amity Park. What would happen if this new enemy were to defeat him? What if Danny lost? How would he be able to protect anyone? Now that his secret is out, everyone has put their faith and trust in Danny to keep Amity Park safe. But, what if this proves to be the one ghost that Danny can't beat? Just as he began to panic, Danny's sister Jazz stepped into his bedroom. "Danny? Are you alright?" she asked. He turned to her with tears in his eyes. Jazz walked up to him and placed her hand on his shoulder, knelt down in front of him, and said, "Look little brother, I want you to understand something." Danny looked her straight in the eyes as he continued to panic, shaking and breathing heavily, with tears flowing. "You are Danny Phantom, you are strong and brave and powerful, but you are also Danny Fenton, my little brother, mom and dad's son, and Sam and Tucker's best friend. And although you've faced countless enemies, there will always be more to come. But Danny, you need to remember that you are never alone. As long as we're around, you'll always be safe. I promise," concluded Jazz. Danny lowered his head and said, "But Jazz, that's what I'm worried about. What if you guys get hurt? If you're too busy protecting me, how are you going to protect yourselves? Now that you all are so willing to help me, I'm putting your lives at risk. With more enemies, comes more danger. Jazz, I cannot allow you guys to risk your lives for me. If something ever happened to you guys, I could never live with myself." With that, Jazz pulled Danny in and hugged him tightly as she said, "You won't have to, little brother. Everything's going to be alright." Jazz pulled away and looked him in the eyes with a loving smile on her face. Danny watched as she got up to leave until she shut the door behind her. Then he whispered solemnly to himself, "How can you be so sure?"

As the stress and anxiety continued to build, Danny finally decided to wash up and go to bed. He'd need his sleep for school tomorrow, especially after what he had experienced today. For the first time since he revealed his secret to the world, he felt unsafe and on edge. But for now, all he could do is try to get some sleep, hoping tomorrow would be a better day. After a long shower and a change of clothes, he jumped into bed and laid down his head. Little did he know that he had a long dreadful night ahead of him.


	2. Chapter 2: Nightmares & Reality

The Ultimate Sacrifice

Chapter 2: Nightmares & Reality

In his sleep, Danny whipped his head back in forth as his ongoing nightmare continued to develop. Beads of sweat were dripping off of him and his breathing became more and more labored. His body was shaking and he began to cry. Although he was asleep, his sub consciousness couldn't decipher between dream or reality. With fear spreading throughout his body, his hands gripped at the bedsheets encasing him as he muttered broken words in his sleep. "Sam… No," he whispered. "Mom… Dad… Jazz… Get away from them," he mumbled with growing intensity. No... No... Get back... NO!" he screamed as he awoke and sat straight up. He was quivering violently, his body drenched in sweat, as he took huge, shaky, breaths one at a time until he gradually started to calm down. While he began to relax more and more, he brought his knees up to his chest and curled himself into a little ball to hid his face as he carelessly wiped the tears from his eyes.

Suddenly, his family came rushing in after they had heard Danny's scream. Maddie burst through his bedroom door and came running up to him before she could even think to turn on the light. Once his father, Jack, had done so, everyone gathered around Danny and Maddie sat right in front of him on his bed, placing her hand on his knee. Danny looked up at her with sadness evident in his eyes and Maddie asked, "Honey, what's wrong? Was it another panic attack? A nightmare?" Danny thought to himself, remembering all the times in the past when he had panic attacks in his sleep, but that was back when the world didn't know his secret. Until now, his most recent one was probably just before the events of the Disasteroid, which was over 3 months ago. Danny thought he was done experiencing such heavy anxiety. He looked down with a frown on his face. "Yeah, both I think. But, I've never had anxiety this bad before. I don't know what happened, it was like something just snapped inside of me. I still can't get those images out of my head," he replied. "Do you wanna talk about it?" Jazz asked, wearing a look of concern for her little brother. "Not really," he replied, still looking away. "Are you sure? It might help," said Jazz. Danny thought about it for a second and then replied with a deep breath and a quick sigh. "Okay," he answered simply.

Danny waited for everyone to grab a chair and make themselves comfortable around him before he got started. As he thought about what he had just seen while he was asleep, he began to get nervous. He bit his lip loosely and blinked his eyes rabidly as his breathing grew heavier and tears started to form. Noticing his fearful behavior, Jazz scooted closer to Danny in her chair next to his bed and placed her hand comfortingly on his. She looked at him with a gentle smile as he took one last deep breath before saying anything. Then, cautiously, he looked up at everyone and recounted the events the occurred in his terrible nightmare.

"The first thing I remember was that it was dark all around, and I couldn't see anything. Then out of nowhere, this ominous pair of glowing red eyes appears in front of me and I hear an evil laugh echoing all around me. I was scared. I didn't know where I was or what was happening. But I did recognize those eyes, and that malicious laugh… they belonged to the ghost that I had just met in the alley yesterday," Danny continued. "Out of fear, I asked him "What do you want from me?! When he responded, I wanted to cry, I was so terrified. He said, "I want nothing from you, Phantom. I just want you dead… and trust me boy, I won't stop until I get what I want. I always do." Danny paused for a moment and took another deep breath to calm himself down before continuing. "After that, everything was pitch black again. Next thing I knew; I was in town with you guys, Sam, and Tucker. There was fire, debris from fallen buildings, and all-out war all around us. The entire town was in complete chaos. I panicked. I turned around, expecting to see you all standing right there with me, but you weren't there. And neither were Sam and Tucker." Danny broke down and started to cry as the story continued to climax. "Then, off in the far distance I see this same ghost that I spoke with earlier slowly approaching Sam as she was cornered against a building. She screamed for my help but there was nothing I could do. I tried everything. I ran for her as hard as I possibly could, but I never got any closer. It was like I wasn't even moving at all. I even tried flying, but that failed too," Danny continued as his emotions poured out of him ceaselessly. "All I could do was watch as the ghost killed Sam ruthlessly! Then, once he was done with Sam, he immediately went after all of you too! All of my family and friends, along with countless citizens were savagely killed because of me!" Danny concluded as he bawled his eyes out, burying his head in his hands.

Maddie, Jack, and Jazz all looked at him with shock and trepidation in their eyes. They couldn't believe what he had just seen in his nightmare. For a moment, they were speechless. Then suddenly, Jazz turned to Danny and lectured him. "Danny, it was only a nightmare, don't worry. None of that is going to happen, do you understand? It's not real." Then Danny lifted his head and retaliated. "But what if it was real Jazz? This new ghost is a very real threat and we have no idea what kind of power he holds. And yesterday, when I first met him, he literally promised me there would be a fight in the near future! With you guys always being by my side for help, your lives are in extreme danger! Don't you see that? That is one risk I simply cannot accept," declared Danny. Maddie then looked her son directly in the eyes and said, "Son, you may be a hero, but every hero needs a sidekick. You and I both know; you can't beat this guy without us. And while we understand why you would refuse to let us help you, it's not exactly your choice." She leaned in closer to Danny and continued, "We know how to protect ourselves, honey. And you know that we would never let you go out there and fight this guy by yourself. Sam and Tucker, especially, would never be able to just sit by and do nothing," stated Maddie. "Please mom, you have to listen to me. I can't let you guys get hurt. Don't you understand? You guys are my weakness. If you all are out there with me, I'll be too worried about protecting you that I won't be able to focus on defeating the ghost. Please. It would just be better for everyone if you stay away from the fight," said Danny. "I'm sorry Danny, but that's not happening. As your family, we can't let you fight this villain alone, it's too dangerous," declared Jack. Danny sighed. "Then how about we meet in the middle? You stay here at home where it's safe while I take on the ghost, and if, and I do mean IF, things seem to be going downhill, then you can intervene. Does that sound fair? That way, I can have time to put all of my focus into defeating the ghost, knowing that you all are safe. And you guys, including Sam and Tucker, can relax knowing that you can all help me if things don't go as planned," he claimed. The three family members took a moment to think it over to themselves. Soon after, they all looked to each other and nodded in approval. Seeing this, Danny then breathed a huge sigh of relief. "Great. Thank you guys. That helps me feel so much better. I'll tell Sam and Tuck later," he said. With that, the group finally got up to leave, sending him a few supportive words on their way out the door, and left Danny to himself to get ready for school.

After spending a few more minutes thinking to himself about everything that had gone down, Danny realized that he had a very long day ahead of him and got up to get ready for school. As he mentally thanked himself for showering last night so he didn't need to do it this morning, the boy walked downstairs and made himself a bowl of cereal for breakfast. After finishing his food, he only needed about 15 more minutes to get ready and then he was on his way to school. As usual, Danny decided to save himself a little extra time and effort by transforming into his ghost form and flying to school instead of walking. Once he had arrived, he met Sam and Tucker by the front doors. He took Sam's hand in his shortly after transforming back into his human form and the three teens made their way towards their first class as they waited for the bell to ring. Before class, they all stopped at their lockers to pick up their books. It was then that they all had the chance to talk for a few minutes. As Danny rifled through his locker, Sam asked, "So how was your night Danny? Judging by the bags under your eyes, it looks like you've had a rough night." "Yeah, I did… I had a panic attack." Sam's eyes grew wide and she replied, "What? Really? That's the first that's happened in a really long time." "Are you alright, man? Do you wanna talk about it?" asked Tucker. "No, that's okay. I'm alright. I'll tell you guys about it at lunch. We won't have time to cover it all before class," Danny responded. "Okay, well don't worry Danny, we're here for you. We've got your back," stated Tucker. As the bell commencing first period rang throughout the building, the three friends closed their lockers and headed to class together.

As the school day dragged on and the teens each headed to their separate classes, Danny grew more and more paranoid with every passing second. When the time for lunch had arrived, Danny took off as fast as he could to meet with his friends and tell them everything. As he ran through the halls, he received numerous looks of surprise from students everywhere. Once he had arrived in the lunch room, Sam and Tucker looked at him from their places in the lunch line with expressions of curiosity and worry. Immediately, Danny joined them in line and waited impatiently as each of them received their food and took their seats at their usual table. Right away, Sam asked Danny, "You wanna tell us what's bothering you or are you just keep acting all weird for the rest of the day?" He nodded sternly and went straight into telling them everything. Over a span of about 25 minutes and maybe 5 bites of food from each of them, the trio had covered everything; from the gruesome nightmare to the worrisome battle plan. While they let their thoughts settle, the friends simply finished their food and prepared for their next class.

About 3 hours later, the school day had finally come to an end and Danny, Sam, and Tucker all met outside the front doors to walk home together. In the short 15 to 20 minute walk it took for Sam and Tucker to reach their houses, they had talked endlessly. They shared many laughs about what went on throughout their school day. However, just as the team of friends was about to go their separate ways for the night, Danny's ghost sense went off. He immediately looked to his friends with fear in his eyes as they also noticed the blue mist emanating from his lips. The boy took action and transformed into his ghost form, ready to face the enemy he knew he had to confront eventually. He gave his best friends one last look of hope before he sent them on their way to FentonWorks, where they would meet with his family. Once they were far enough away, Danny floated up above the town to get a better look at his surroundings. But as he prepared himself for battle, with feelings of determination and perseverance, Danny was shocked when he saw what he least expected.


	3. Chapter 3: The Unbearable Enemy

**The Ultimate Sacrifice**

Chapter 3: The Unbearable Goodbye

What Danny saw before him left him in complete and utter disbelief. His heart sank as he took in the events of his surroundings. All throughout the city streets below him, a thick, black fog spread about. All traffic ceased and worried citizens of Amity Park started to panic and get out their cars to see what was happening. The fog continued to build more and more as the ghost-boy watched from above in fear. Slowly, the fog began to encase the panicked citizens and numerous screams cried out from below him. Danny's brows furrowed and his eyes darted back and forth as he watched citizen after citizen get consumed by the fog.

Then, he realized the heartbreaking power of the ominous fog when one person after another slowly emerged from it. Each and every person that was taken by the fog had returned as diseased, monstrous beings with nothing but an urge to kill. They all had eerie, black veins covering their bodies and their eyes turned to a dead, grey color, as if they were blind. It looked as if their souls had been sucked away from them and they were left as nothing but an empty carcass to be used as a weapon. The affected people viciously ran after and attacked the others. As the chaos continued to build dramatically, Danny knew he had to take action immediately. But just before he was about to fly down to the people for help, the ghostly nemesis from his most recent encounters appeared before him from the fog. Danny jumped and yelled; "What have you done!? Why are you attacking all of these people!? They've done nothing to you. They're innocent!" The ominous ghost replied with a smile; "I told you there would be a fight ghost-boy, and you're about to see it unfold." "Why?", asked Danny. "What do you want?!" "Oh, I think you already know the answer to that question, ghost-boy.", the enemy replied. "Wait… the nightmare… that was you!?", Danny cried. The dark ghost gave a malicious laugh and replied; "Of course it was me! I gave you a warning ghost-boy. I told you there would be a fight and I wanted to make sure you wouldn't forget it.", he continued. "I wanted to show you that your only options are to surrender to me and let me kill you, or lose the ones you so dearly love. That nightmare was a preview of what the consequences would be if you refused." Danny looked at him with tears welling up in his eyes and asked, "But… It doesn't make sense… Who are you? What did I ever do to make you hate me so much? And why take out your fury on these innocent people?! They have nothing to do with this! And neither do my friends and family! Leave them out of it." The malicious ghost shook his head and laughed, anger reflected in his blood red eyes. "You don't get it do you? Everything I do is to make you weak. To see you break. Don't you see?! **I want you dead, ghost-child**. All you are to me is an immature little boy playing with fire and getting in the way. This world loves you too much. You're their little hero. A perfect little child, getting everything handed to him because of one simple confession. …My name is Eurynome, meaning 'death', which explains why my powers take the life out of everything they touch. And unless you surrender to me, this precious world and everyone in it will pay the consequences."

Danny paused for a moment as he took in everything that Eurynome had said. His face dropped and his heart broke as he thought back to what had happened in that ruthless nightmare. He could **not** let that happen. As one single tear ran down his cheek, Danny bravely looked up into his enemy's eyes and proclaimed; " **I won't let you hurt any more innocent people.** But I'm not about to just hand over my life to you either." Eurynome paused and stared directly at Danny with a blank, angry look on his face. "Fine.", he stated softly. "You've made your decision. Come find me when you change your mind. I know you will eventually. The only question is… How many lives must be lost before you do?", he replied viciously as he vanished into a cloud of black.

Danny shook as his fear grew within him at the sudden disappearance of his newfound nemesis. His thoughts were suddenly pulled back to reality at the growing volume of the endless screams below him. More and more soulless victims were being created just as more and more unaffected people were being attacked and killed at the heartless hands of Eurynome. Danny could stand by no longer as his rage exploded within him. His nightmare was slowly turning into reality before his eyes and he knew he had little time to stop it. He flew as fast as he could towards the vast group of helpless people fleeing below him. The ghost-boy landed just behind them and projected a huge shield of ectoplasmic energy in an effort to fight off the diseased victims. Countless more attackers ran into his shield with full force; pounding on it with everything they had, trying to break through. With each additional attack, Danny's strength depleted. His body began to shake, he was sweating profusely, and his face contorted into an angry scowl as he fought to keep his shield up. He knew he couldn't do it for much longer, but he also knew that as soon as his shield fell many more people would be brutally attacked. Danny let out one immense cry as his shield began to crack.

Sam, Tucker, and the Fenton family all watched from the safety of the op center as their beloved city was thrown into all-out war. The had realized that this was exactly what Danny's nightmare had predicted., which left them all in serious worry. They each held a pair of binoculars to keep a close eye on Danny. The watched on in horror as Danny struggled to protect the citizens from harm. From what they could see; Danny's shield was being obliterated and he was growing weaker and weaker by the second. This was not looking good at all. The friends and family grew more and more anxious with each passing moment. They were all trying to figure out how soon they should join in to assist him. It broke their hearts to watch from the sidelines as Danny fell to the ground in exhaustion as his shield was destroyed. The all gasped in horror as the monstrous beings immediately overcame him and every other citizen behind him.

Copious amounts of the soulless attackers piled on top of Danny and beat at him until he was nothing but a bruised and bloodied pulp. The rest of them chased after the unaffected citizens in the distance with every desire to kill. With one huge burst of strength, Danny suddenly let out an intense blast of bright green ectoplasmic energy straight into the sky above him. The blast struck every single attacker within a 100-yard radius, leaving them battered and unconscious. Now that Danny had a moment to breathe, he laid on the pavement and heaved deep, labored breaths. As he hung on the verge of consciousness, a slight mixture of bright green ectoplasm and deep red blood slowly oozed out of each of his wounds. From the serious beating he had sustained extensive injuries. He had cuts and dark purple bruises all over his body, especially his face. Other than that and maybe a broken bone or two, he still considered himself strong enough to continue. Once he had gained his grip on reality and returned to full consciousness, he slowly got up onto his knees and then stood. He wavered a little bit from dizziness as he did so, but stood nonetheless. He put a hand up to his forehead in an effort to soothe the dizziness, only to find that it was seriously bruised and hurt to the touch. He winced and brought his hand back down to look at it, finding his hybrid blood smeared along his fingers. Time seemed to be moving in slow-motion as he took a look around, every move he made hurt and ached. But he knew he couldn't quit. He looked over to his friends and family standing atop the op center in the far distance. Though he knew they were very worried, and that they would be willing to help in the blink of an eye, he didn't want to put their lives at risk, not for any second longer than absolutely necessary. So he raised his left hand high into the air to give them a reassuring sign that he was okay to continue, even though he knew it broke their hearts to see him this way. But the way he saw it was, better their hearts be broken than their lives be lost.

Sam, Tucker, and the Fentons all looked to each other with immense worry in their eyes after receiving Danny's signal. They knew what it meant; he didn't need their help or at least he didn't want it. Not yet anyway. What they had just seen Danny encounter left them in agonizing emotional pain. They wanted nothing more than to be by his side; helping him, protecting him. But they knew they made a deal with him; which was the best thing they could've done, no matter how painful it was. It gave them all the very best chances, given the situation. All they could do was watch on in agony as Danny fought until he could fight no more; until he called for their help. What they didn't realize though, was exactly what it would take for the hero of Amity Park to stop fighting.

Once Danny had regained his grip on reality, he turned away from his family and took in his gruesome surroundings. People were still being attacked in every direction. There was no way Danny would be able to protect them all. He knew there was only one thing left to do. After yet another innocent person was killed by those lifeless beings, that was the last straw. As his raw emotions got the best of him, Danny screamed. He cried out as loud as he possibly could without breaking into his ghostly wail. "Eurynome! Where are you!? **Eurynome!** " It was then that Danny felt a sudden presence behind him, and whipped around as fast as he could to face his nemesis. With fury in his eyes, he glared at Eurynome. "You called?", he asked. "Has the young ghost-hero changed his mind?" he continued. "Oh no. But I have a score to settle with you.", stated the ghost-boy as he lunged at Eurynome. The dark ghost only vanished into a cloud of thick, black fog. An echoing malicious laugh emanated from the fog which began to surround Danny. He looked all around him into the growing fog as his anger continued to build. Eurynome's voice echoed again, "You can't attack something that can't be touched ghost-boy." Darkness enveloped Danny as he waved his hands around, flailing about; trying to defend himself against his intangible enemy.

Danny's friends and family watched what was happening from their view atop the op center. With the black fog growing dramatically, encasing Danny, they knew they had to act fast, especially since they realized that they wouldn't be able to see if Danny needed their help. "This isn't good. I can't see Danny anywhere. How are we supposed to tell if he needs us if we can't see him?", asked Tucker; worry evident in his voice. "None of us can see him Tucker, that's the problem.", Sam replied sarcastically. "Now is not the time for smartass remarks Sam. Danny be could dying out there and would never even know! What do we do?", Tucker asked. Suddenly, Maddie snapped. "That's it. I'm not waiting any longer. He needs us, whether he wants to admit it or not.", she exclaimed as she put down her binoculars and readied her weapons. "Wait, what? We're going out there? Are you sure that's a good idea Mrs. Fenton?", asked Tucker worriedly. As Maddie began to walk away, she responded, "Are you serious Tucker? You just said it yourself. Danny could be dying right now! I'm not about to just sit here and do nothing while we have no clue what that **monster** could be doing to him." She paused with a sigh. "Danny's risked his life enough for us… don't you think it's time we do the same for him?" Tucker gave her a solemn nod after thinking about what she had said. Then Maddie turned around and headed to Danny's aid. After a short pause and a few looks of worry shared between them, the others followed closely behind, weapons at the ready.

As Danny fought to get a grip on his enemy, he noticed that the fog surrounding him began to fade away. With it, a voice echoed one eerie statement. "What'll it be ghost-boy? Your life? …Or theirs?" Suddenly, the last of the fog dissipated, revealing the image of Danny's loved ones running towards him. As he shook with intense fear and worry, Danny only had time to whisper one word with tears welling up in his eyes.… "No."

Danny watched in horror as Eurynome flew high above him, looking straight at his loved ones. It was then that reality hit him like a ton of bricks. This was not going to end well. Someone was going to die. Tears began to flow at the utter realization that, it was either going to be him or someone he loved. Then suddenly, reality dawned on him and he knew immediately what had to be done. Time seemed to slow almost to a complete stop as Danny saw what was happening. Eurynome brought his dead colored hands up above his head and his face contorted into an expression of nothing but pure hatred as he charged up a ball of bright red ectoplasm. Danny ran as fast as his feet could carry him until he ended up flying at top speed. He screamed, " **NO!** ", as he darted directly in front of his loved ones, right in the line of fire. And just as Eurynome let out an angered scream, he blasted his petrifying, electric, red ectoplasm at them. Danny raised his hands in front of him and his loved ones and a neon green light emanated from them as he quickly projected another giant green shield. Just as he did so, an enormous clap of thunder echoed throughout the city, grabbing the attention of everyone around, even the diseased. Every single person stopped and stared in awe at the horrific event occurring in front of them.

It all happened so fast. Eurynome's powerful blast continued to press hard into Danny's shield, weakening both it and himself by the second. The longer he held the shield, the weaker he became. Danny's friends and family stood behind him in fear and tragic worry. They knew how much power it took for him to sustain a shield, better yet, hold it up for as long as he is. They could see his strength wavering. Just as they had seen him do with his previous shield, he began to shake and quiver, drip sweat, and breathe heavily. Danny closed his eyes tight, brows furrowed, as he let out a cry of agony. Without letting the shield fall, he collapsed onto one knee. Maddie, Jack, Jazz, Sam, and Tucker all knew what was happening. Eurynome was only getting more powerful as Danny continued to grow weaker. He was killing him. Each of them began to shed tears as they watched Danny suffer. He was only trying to protect them. … One small crack after another, the shield began to break. Still trying to keep what was left of his shield intact, Danny turned his head towards his loved ones and yelled; "You guys need to get out of here. Now! Get back to the house! …Once this shield falls, he'll come for you. And… I don't know if I will be able to stop him. I'm too weak.", he said between labored breaths. "No Danny!", Maddie yelled. "We're not leaving you! You'll be killed!" Danny looked to her with tears in his eyes, "…Please. I have to do this. Without you." "But Danny… You'll die! I can't let you die. None of us can. We have to try.", Sam pleaded. With only a few pieces of the shield holding back the wrath of Eurynome's death ray, Danny snapped. " **It's either my life or yours, guys**! …Please. Go. There is no other way…", he concluded. As they noticed how desperate he was to protect them and how the shield barely was holding up, they looked to him one last time… and then they slowly turned to leave. But just before they did, Sam ran up to Danny and kissed him without any hesitation. Danny jumped and he almost dropped his shield as Sam pulled away. She looked him straight in the eyes and said..." I love you, Danny." She cried. "Please stay, if you can… I can't lose you." Tears began to leak from Danny's eyes now too as he said to her, "I will always fight for you. I promise… I love you too, Sam.", he stared into her eyes solemnly. "Now go. Go." It was then that Sam got up to leave, looking back at Danny one last time as she ran away.

Once Danny's loved ones were safe in the boundaries of his home, he weakly let go of the last remaining pieces of the shield. Eurynome's crucial blast hit him like 1,000 volts of electricity. The sheer power of the blast threw him about 20 feet on the pavement. His body sustaining countless injuries, was covered from head to toe in deep, bloody gashes, dark purple bruises, various fractures, and internal bleeding. Danny could barely move as he laid there on the pavement, coughing up bloody ectoplasm. He tried to move, but it was too painful. His eyes were open but everything he saw was fuzzy and surrounded by darkness, which probably meant he had a concussion. Danny knew he was barely hanging on at this point. It was then that he heard that familiar malicious laugh in the distance. He knew what was coming. Danny just laid there, struggling to breathe. "I want to hear you say it. Surrender to me ghost-boy, and I will end your suffering. Say it.", cooed Eurynome. Suddenly, Danny slowly began to move. He cried out in pain as every move ached with agony. But… with one torturous step at a time, he got onto his knees, and eventually, he stood. As painful as it was, he was standing and he was staring straight into the eyes of his killer.

Danny's eyes filled with both sorrow and passion as he spoke. "I will let you kill me… under one condition.", he stated. "I'm listening.", said Eurynome. After a short pause, Danny continued, "You have to promise me that… if I give my life to you… you won't harm anyone else in all of Amity Park. Not one more person. And you must also heal the ones you've poisoned with your black fog.", he proclaimed. "If you can promise me that… then I will surrender." Another short pause later and Eurynome spoke, "You've got yourself a deal, ghost-boy… Now let me hear you say it."

Danny's eyes closed softly and one single tear was shed as he spoke one last time.

" **I surrender."**

Without any hesitation, Eurynome grabbed Danny and jolted him forward just as he stabbed his murderously long claws into Danny's chest. As if on cue, screams could be heard in the distance. He knew who it was, too. His family. His friends. He would never see them again. He would never be able to go on a date with Sam. He would never be able to graduate high school. 15 years was all he got. But it was a good 15 years. Even now, in this very moment, Danny wouldn't have changed a single thing. Danny's eyes opened wide and tears flowed from them. As Eurynome held his claws in Danny's chest, the ghost-boy's bloody mixture poured out from the wound as the crack of broken flesh was heard. Vicious black veins creeped over Danny's skin; up his neck, onto his face and his hands. Then slowly, Danny leaned his head back as Eurynome sucked the life out of him and his beautifully stunning glowing green eyes slowly turned into a dead grey color. As the pain from Eurynome's power continued to build, Danny let out one last agonizing scream. One that could be heard from miles away. And as his body lurched in Eurynome's deadly grip, the evil ghost ripped his claws from Danny's body and he fell. With one final movement, Danny's gloved hand hit the ground just as he transformed into his human self for the last time and he gave his dying breath.


End file.
